My installation features two stories. One I have been told, and another I am telling. One that is vibrant and inspiring and missing pieces, and another which is both hopeful and ominous, dreamed but not yet done. My family’s story is woven together from many voices, most of them female.
Each story piecemealed together into a worn and cozy patchwork quilt sewn with the hands of generations of strong women. My research resulted in a patchwork book- a scrapbook. This medium served as an open door for curiosity, imperfection, and mess; all necessary components for understanding where I come from and how this has informed who I am.
Like a quilt, my family is composed of patterns that span across generations and time, simple from a distance and complex up close. A physical book felt important to me as well. Beginning at a young age, I understood story as a way to connect with people.
There is something wonderful about having a book read aloud to you as a child and something meaningful about their themes as a young adult. For me, books and reading and the written word feel safe, like family.
Finally, constructing a scrapbook allowed me to continue to ask questions and remain curious throughout its creation. How can a story exist without words and what might that look, feel, or sound like? In retelling stories I have been told, am I fabricating a new one altogether? Who will tell my story when I no longer can?
